Business Pulse

There's just the slightest hint of fall on the breeze as Steve Rivers and I walk down South Street toward Austin Commercial LP's job site for the $100 million Church Street Plaza.

Rivers disputes my observation, and I have to begrudgingly concede the point to Austin's southeast region vice president, because once we leave the shadow of the Grand Bohemian, the pavement sucks any hint of crispness out of the air.

As we make our way toward Lincoln Property Co.'s development wedged between Interstate 4 Ultimate construction and the railroad tracks at the northeast corner of South Street and Garland Avenue, the screech of an augercast pile drilling rig rings in my ears. But for now it's just a screech coming from Interstate 4, because I have no idea what an augercast pile drilling rig is. I later find out it basically works like a syringe to bore holes and pipe stems of concrete 80 feet into the ground so steel rods can be lowered in before the concrete hardens. And you need a ton to hold up a 26-story tower — 598 to be exact, for this project.

I'm learning all this in the basement of the Ballroom at Church Street. When Steve last month told me Austin Commercial temporarily moved into the basement of the Church Street ballroom, I didn't realize it literally was the basement — the exposed walls give that away quickly. As I'm seated at a conference table with Rivers; Michael Spencer, senior project manager; and Brian Thomas, senior superintendent, a passing SunRail train shakes the building right down to my pen.

And that proximity to the railroad tracks will pose a challenge to the project, which will take coordination over a radio on the part of the railroad folks and Austin Commercial to make sure the construction doesn't interfere with transit, because trains and cranes don't mix.

There's no room on the site for a retention pond, so Austin is building an underground system of tanks that will give the rainwater somewhere to go. The tanks have little holes in them that allow the water to seep out.

Thomas has worked on the project since May. "We started construction Aug. 29. We're in the first eight weeks of the project, which is the most difficult time. We are dealing with everything under the ground that we may or may not know about."

One of those things is a 50-year-old power line filled with oil to keep conductors that are part of the city grid cool. Austin Commercial has to tunnel around and under it.

Thomas chuckles when I ask what he's enjoying about the project. "The architect is great. We're trying our best to keep this thing on time. Getting it out of the ground is the hardest part."

Once Austin gets through the concrete pincushion part, it will be getting the foundation in and going vertical with the structure in late January. Spencer — the self-described "paper pusher" — said the next milestone is getting the structure all the way up, then adding the "skin" components — precast glass on the outside. "We should be up to level seven or eight by next summer," Spencer said.

"Topping out" — putting the hat on the building — will happen January 2019. Lincoln wants this done in fall 2019. "Or as soon as possible," Spencer said.

Right now, there are 40 people working on the project, but that number will peak at 250 when the glass skin and mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems will be put in.

"When you build a job, it's almost like going to war," Rivers said. "You have to make battlefield day decisions every day. Every hour, every minute, something is changing. So you have to adjust and adapt. The camaraderie you build with your team members lasts a lifetime."

As for the planned SunRail platform in Phase 2, the team tells me we're sitting in it. The platform will take the place of the ballroom. I ask when that might be, but the team tells me it's still too early to even speculate.

The interview reaches its natural conclusion. I ask the gentlemen for photos.

As Rivers walks me out to the entrance of the construction site, I ask one of the workers — a woman as fine-boned as a sparrow, and nearly as small — for a photo of us. When I look at it, it seems as though we're posing with the SunTrust tower, instead of the space where Church Street Plaza will rise.